It took a moment for Aya to realize that although she asked Jake questions, she wasn't [i]actually[/i] supposed to be able to hear his familiar voice. She froze at his words. The Matrix. [i]The Matrix[/i].

[i][color=mediumspringgreen]You've got to be kidding me.[/color][/i]

She sort of hated how much sense it made, as pieces slowly began falling into place. And of course when she turned around, there was the tiki and a polar bear, just as the stranger had said. Aya was fairly certain they hadn't been there before. The stranger – what had Jake called him? Zach? – seemed distressed, desperate even, when he asked if either of them recognized him.

[color=mediumspringgreen]"I'm sorry, but I don't think I know you,"[/color] she replied. [color=mediumspringgreen]"But… the Matrix? That's really the theory we're going with right now?"[/color] Of course she knew it was actually a pretty reasonable theory. Didn't mean she had to like it. [color=mediumspringgreen]"Ok so… that means we're being held by someone, right? We were captured or something?"[/color] [i]Captured[/i]. That sounded familiar for some reason. What had she been doing right before this? She'd been… captured. Yes, that sounded right. But for the life of her, she couldn't remember by whom or when or why. It seemed memory gaps were a shared side-effect.

Aya looked around at the hectic beach. People she'd never met, people she knew, and people she'd rather forget were all here. Who'd want to grab such a random bunch? But then she realized the one thing they all seemed to have in common.

[color=mediumspringgreen]"Zach,"[/color] she asked, turning back to him. [color=mediumspringgreen]"Are you a Meta?"[/color]

[@Gentlemanvaultboy]
[@Subject Zero]